Paper bag or container



C. H. HOWARD.

PAPER BAG 0R CONTAINER.

APPLICATION FILED. DEC. 12. 1914.

1 ,333,7 1 4: Patented Mar. 16, 1920.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

CHARLES H. HOWARD, OF SAUGUS, MASSACHUSETTS, ASS'IGNOR TO PAPER PRODUCTS MACHINE COMPANY, OF BOSTON, MASSACHUSETTS, A CORPORATION OF MASSACHU- SETTS.

PAPER. BAG OR CONTAINER.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Application filed December 12, 1914. Serial No. 876,831.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, CHARLES H. Howann, a citizen of the United States, residing at Saugus, county of Essex, and State of Massachusetts, have invented an Improvement in Paper Bags or Containers, of which the following description, in connection with the accompanying drawings, isa specification, like letters on the drawings representing like parts.

The present invention relates to bags or other forms of containers, and more particularly to such bags or containers that are designed for holding heavy granular or semi-granular material, such as cement, grain, flour, or the like; or for serving as a protecting covering for non-granular material, such, for instance, as bolts of cloth and the like.

As enerally well understood and recognized y those familiar with the character istics of bags and other containers, the

weakest part develops alongthe edges and corners, and frequently a container may he otherwise substantially in perfect condition but an edge, especially. where the container is formed of folded material, will give way or break open to the injury or loss of the contained material.

' There are numerous causes for this,

. among which may be mentioned the partial rupture caused by the sharp bend in the material of the container at the folded edge,

7 capacity for resisting rupturethat such con tainers may be safely formed of paper,

either with or without a waterproof covering.- The containers, of course, may take various forms, but 1n exploitatlon of the invention herein, it is shown as embodied in a paper bag, though it is not restricted thereto, as will be readily understood.

In carrying the invention into practical effect, the material of which the contamer is formed, which may be either fabric or paper, is preferably folded into the desired shape or form for the intended use, and has extending longitudinally along the fold at the edge thereof, a reinforcing thread, cord, or the like, which may be secured in place by an adhesive. This alone may be suffi cient in some cases, but the invention further contemplates that the reinforcing element which extends longitudinally along the edge of the fold, and which for identification may be hereinafter called the reinforcing thread or cord, may itself be supported bythreads, cords, or the like, adhesively secured to the surface of the fabric or paper at the portions of the container adjacent each side of the edge and passing over the reinforcing thread or cord. The said series of thread, cords. tapes or the like, may and preferably are secured to the surface of the fabric or paper in separated relation, the intervals of separation being de pendent upon the use to which the container is to be put. F urthermore,- the fabric of which the container is formed, especially when of paper, may be arranged in two plies with the edge reinforcing thread or cord and the series of strengthening threads or cords which pass over the edge thread or cord, inclosed between them. The adhesive for thus securing the threads or cords between the two plies may be of any suitable character, but is preferably of a waterproof compound or mixture, which, in addition to holding the said threads or cords in the described relation, also imparts a waterproof character to the container.

In the drawings I Figure 1 is a perspective view of a container shown in the form of a paper bag,

embodying the features of the present invention;

Fig. 2 is a section on the line 2-2 of Fig. 1; and

Fig. 3 is a section on the line 33 of Fig. 1.

The container may be of any appropriate shape suitable for its intended use. and the characteristic of the invention with relation thereto is well exemplified by the incorporation of said invention in a paper bag, substantially as indicated in Fig. 1.

. The container or paper bag 1 may be appropriately formed from a blank, which, when folded into the desired shape with the parts secured together, may present the general configurationas indicated in Fig. 1, wherein the side portions 2 may extend continuously from the mouth of the bag and around the bottom, while the side edge portions may be formed by portions of the blank being overlapped and secured together, either by appropriate cement material, or otherwise.

In the illustrated application of the invention, the paper bag is preferably formed of the two plies of paper 3, 4:, which may be cemented together, preferably by a Waterproof material, and when in assem-- bled condition, the paper bag has extending along its bottom and along its vertical edges. as shown in Fig. 1, a sharp folded edge portion. readily understood, when the bags are in fiat condition during shipment and storage, and the material of thebag or container along these folded edges is the recognized weakest portion of the bag or container. When the bag or container is filled or partially filled, either with granular or other material, the edge portions thereof are liable to become ruptured. and it is one of the purposes of the present invention to provide a bag or container structure where- 'in this weakened condition of the folded edge portions shall be substantially eliminated.

To the above ends, the invention contemplates that at the bottom edge portion 5, Figs. 1 and 2, where the material of the bag has a sharp folded edge portion, there shall be provided a reinforcing thread or cord (3 extending longitudinally along the folded edge from one lower corner of the bag to the other. This reinforcing thread or cord 6 serves to impart to the otherwise weakened folded edge 5, an additional. strength.

The longitudinally extending reinforcing thread or cord 6 may of itself be suflicient in some cases, to provide the necessary strength at the folded edge of the container or bag, but in other cases, the weight I of the material contained in the bag may be such as to require that the reinforcing thread or cord 6 may be itself further sup ported at different portions of its length; and to this end, the invention contemplates the series of threads or cords 7 which shall extend along the adjacent side portions 2. of the bag and overlie the longitudinally extending reinforcing thread or cord 6, substantially as indicated in Fig. 2'. To effectively enable the series of threads or cords 7 to perform their intended functions, these threads or cords may be adhesively secured to the adjacent side portions 2 of the bag,

- and similarly, the longitudinally extending thread 6 may be adhesively secured along the edge portion of the bag or container.

When the bag or container is formed of two plies of material, as illustrated in the.

This is emphasized, as will be' present form of'the invention, the longitudinally extending thread or cord 6 and the series of cords 7 passing thereover, may be conveniently and preferably will be, secured between the two plies 3, 4, of the bag material.

As hereinbefore noted, the side edge portions of the container or bag are also of less maximum strength than the other portions of the bag or container; and to overcome this defective condition, the side edge por-- tions are similarly provided with longitudinally extending threads or cords, which, for identification, are indicated in Fig. 3 by 8. For further strengthening the side edge portions of the bag or container, there are the circumferentially extending threads or cords 9, Fig. 3, the said threads or cords 8 and 9 being preferably secured in place between the plles 3, 4 of the bag or container ma terial.

' In carrying the invention into effect, it may be desirable to support the bag additionally at parts other than at the folded edge portions at the bottom and along the sides; and to this end, the longitudinally extending threads at the edge portions may be duplicated at intervals throughout the length" and circumferential dimensions of the bag or container, as will be readily understood. In this latter case, a convenient and practical bag or container material may be produced by placing between the two plies of paper or other similar material, longitudinal and transverse threads, and securing such longitudinal and transverse threads in position between the two plies of material by a cement or Waterproof compound. These longitudinal and transverse threads may be laid between the two'webs of paper in separated relation, the degree of separation depending primarily upon the particular use to which the bag or container is to be put, because some bags or containers may require that the longitudinal thread extending along the folded edge shall be supported at more frequent intervals, while others may require a less frequent support of the edge reinforcing thread. In any event, the edge reinforcing thread should extend along the edge portion where the material of the bag or container is weakest and should, so far as possible, receive additional support from a series of threads or cords passing at an angle thereto.

In the present form of the invention, the bag or container 1 is shown as having its side edge portions formed by overlapping the edges 10, 11, which are preferably secured together by a cement or glue; In this construction, as will be apparent from Fig. 3, the .side edge portions of the bag or container are doubly reinforced by the longitudinal edge reinforcing threads 8.and their From the construction described, it will be apparent that the present invention provides for strengthening a bag or container along that portion thereof Which is inherently the Weakest part of the bag or container, by means of a thread or cord extending longitudinally along the folded edge thereof; and as a further feature of the invention, it contemplates that such longitudinally extending reinforcing thread or cord shall in some cases be itself reinforced. When the invention is embodied .in the paper bag as illustrated by the drawings, and the top portions of the bag or mouth thereof are closed and secured together, the

tend both longitudinally and transversely thereof.

It will be apparent that some of the features of the invention may be varied within the true scope thereof as defined by the 2 5 claims.

What is claimed is 1. A reinforced paper bag or container formed of two independent plies of paper secured together face to face by a waterproof adhesive and having folds or creases at a side edge. and bottom thereof, unwoven reinforcing thread means of substantial size incorporated with the water- .proof adhesive between the two paper plies and located at and extending longitudinally of said folds or creases to reduce the sharpness of said folds or creases and strengthen said side edge and bottom, series of spaced unwoven reinforcing threads incorporated with the waterproof adhesive between the two plies and extending transversely of'said folds or creases and the thread means therein to resist strains on the bag transversely of the thread means in said folds or creases, and adhesive means to secure said thread means and said series of threads to the paper in predetermined relation thereto.

2. A reinforced paper bag or container formed of two independent plies or sheets of paper secured together face to face by a waterproof adhesive and having a fold or crease at an edge thereof, an unwoven reinforcing thread of substantial size embedded in the waterproof adhesive between the plies and located at and extending longitudinally of said fold or crease to reduce the sharpness thereof and strengthen said edge, a series of spaced unwoven reinforcing threads embedded in the waterproof adhesive between the plies and extending transversely of said fold or crease and the thread therein to resist strains on the bag transversely of the thread in said fold or crease, said waterproof adhesive serving to unite the two sheets of paper: and hold the reinforcing threads in position between the sheets.

In testimony whereof I have signed my name to this specification, in the presence of two subscribing witnesses CHARLES H. HOWARD.

Vitnesses BEATRICE I. SMITH, EDWARD F. ALLEN. 

